song reviews
Social Media targeted at influencers and trending topics in the music universe.
Lil Nas X: The Musical Revolutionary Who Changed Everything
You know that feeling when a song comes on and you instantly know it's going to be stuck in your head for weeks? That's exactly what happened when "Old Town Road" first hit the airwaves back in 2018. But behind that catchy tune was a young man from Georgia who was about to flip the music industry on its head – and he was just getting started.
By Fazal Ur Rahmanabout a year ago in Beat
Xoë Miles on “I Said It,” Her Musical Journey, and What’s Next
By Sandy Lo Nashville-based singer/songwriter Xoë Miles is the very definition of a one-woman powerhouse. She often writes, records her background vocals, and even mixes and masters her songs. On her latest release, the vibey and emotive single “I Said It”, Xoë collaborated with fellow Nashville talent Olivia Gunn to write the track, while Joseph DePrizio served as engineer. The song blends smooth production with lyrical vulnerability, showcasing Xoë’s knack for crafting music that’s as authentic as it is sonically rich.
By All’s Fair in Love & Writingabout a year ago in Beat
More Than a Melody: Finding God's Plan in the Music of Brandon Lake
There are moments when the blueprint for your life feels like it’s been shredded. A closed door, a delayed promise, a dream that shatters in your hands—we’ve all stood in the rubble, wondering if the architect has abandoned the project. As the voice behind Sunshine Firecracker, I’ve always sought out art that speaks to resilient faith. It's in those moments of uncertainty that a song like Brandon Lake's "Plans" becomes more than a melody. It becomes an anchor. It’s a testimony that God’s design still holds, even when our path is covered in debris.
By Sunshine Firecracker™about a year ago in Beat
Why Brandon Lake's 'Count 'Em' is the Anthem for Survivors of Narcissistic Abuse
When Brandon Lake’s song ‘Count ’Em’ hit the airwaves, it landed differently. It wasn't just another worship anthem; for those who have survived narcissistic abuse, it felt like a war cry. If you've endured the isolating terror of a smear campaign, covert abuse, or the systemic silencing that follows, you know this song is more than music. It’s a ledger. It's the validation you fought for. It’s a refusal to let an abuser's gaslighting rewrite your history.
By Sunshine Firecracker™about a year ago in Beat
Truth in Music: How Jelly Roll and Brandon Lake Shaped My Hallelujah After Lancaster County Prison
There are roads in life you don’t choose to drive. For me, that road led to court-ordered drug and alcohol treatment—punishment from false arrests that had nothing to do with who I truly was.
By Sunshine Firecracker™about a year ago in Beat
Brandon Lake, Jelly Roll, and the Truth of a "Hard Fought Hallelujah"
I didn’t expect a worship song to come wrapped in southern grit. But when Jelly Roll stepped onto a track with Brandon Lake, Hard Fought Hallelujah, something clicked deep inside me. Their voices—one from the church stage, one from country rap’s rough roads—met in a place that felt like home to me: the battlefield between despair and hope.
By Sunshine Firecracker™about a year ago in Beat
Slumerican Symphony: Yelawolf, Redemption, and the New Southern Outlaws
Part I: The Architect - Michael "Yelawolf" Atha Gadsden to Antioch - Forging an Identity The artistic identity of Michael Wayne Atha, professionally known as Yelawolf, is not a constructed persona but the direct, almost inevitable, result of a life defined by instability and cultural collision. His biography is the foundational mythos of the Slumerican movement, and to understand the latter, one must first deconstruct the former. Born in Gadsden, Alabama, to a mother who was only 16, with a father who "was nowhere to be found," Atha's childhood was a crucible of constant motion. The family roamed so frequently that by the time he left high school, he had attended 15 different schools, a nomadic existence that instilled in him a relentless forward momentum, a "shark-like quality — to swim is to breathe".
By Sunshine Firecracker™about a year ago in Beat
Dear Brother: Nahko’s Radical Love Song for Healing Broken Bonds
The first lines of Nahko's "Dear Brother" aren't abstract poetry. They're a voicemail you should have answered: “Dear brother, when you gonna call back your mother?Thinks you’re sleeping in the gutter,We both know you can do better.”
By Sunshine Firecracker™about a year ago in Beat
T-Roy Reezy's 'The Life' Preview: A West Coast Vibe with NYC Approval by NWO Sparrow
Rapid Review of T-Roy A.K.A Reezy "The Life" Record Beat- 7/10 Lyrics-8/10 Concept-5/10 Rollout-N/A Replay Value-7/10 The Blueprint: T-Roy Reezy’s “The Life” is a West Coast Flex with a NY State of Mind
By NWO SPARROWabout a year ago in Beat
Progressively Covered
Introduction I wanted to do a playlist of progressive music that was maybe a littel different, and then remembered that Yes had covered Simon and Garfunkel's "America", and thought what about some unexpected covers of songs by artists that could be classed in the Progressive Universe, and four immediately came to mind.
By Mike Singleton 💜 Mikeydred about a year ago in Beat
🤡Clowns🤡
Introduction I haven't done much in BEAT for a bit, and despite being a Top Creator in the community, I have not had a Top Story for years, despite getting a lot of reads outside of Vocal, but they don't seem to like my taste in music any more, I am obviously too good for them 🤡.
By Mike Singleton 💜 Mikeydred about a year ago in Beat
